How to Stop My Wood Stove From Blowing Smoke Into the House During a Windy Day

Written by john walker| 13/05/2017

Chimney caps keep out the weather and wind while allowing smoke to flow freely. (Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images)

Windy areas force air into any crevasse it can find. A well-built wood stove is vented through the roof or wall using standard vent pipes. The smoke follows the path of least resistance as it rises, which is typically straight out of the pipe. A high wind can push into the unprotected vent pipe, forcing the smoke back into the stove and out the front grates. Protecting the vent pipe or a chimney from the blowback is a simple matter of installing a chimney cap.

Things you need

Chimney cap

Vent pipe

Drill

Screwdriver drill bit

Self-tapping sheet metal screws

Measure the width and length of the outside of the chimney and the opening of the chimney. Measure the diameter of the vent pipe, if the stove vents without the use of a chimney.

Purchase a chimney cap to fit the chimney or vent pipe. Chimney caps are available as metal inserts that fit the inner measurements of the chimney or as metal caps that sit on top of the chimney. Vent pipe caps fit around the diameter of the pipe.

Add piping to the vent to ensure that the end of the pipe is pointed vertically if the pipe exits horizontally out an exterior wall. Installing a vent pipe is a matter of pressing the new pipe over the opening of the existing pipe. An elbow-joint pipe will allow you to turn the horizontal pipe to point straight up.

Attach the cap to the chimney or vent pipe. Chimney caps are installed in various fashions. Consult the directions that accompany the cap. Vent pipe caps fit over the existing pipe and are held in place by drilling self-tapping sheet metal screws through the sides of the cap into the existing pipe.